| Battle of Sacile | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of theWar of the Fifth Coalition | |||||||
 Porcia, the focus of major fighting | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 First French Empire Kingdom of Italy |  Austrian Empire | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Eugène de Beauharnais | Archduke John | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 37,050, 54 guns[1] | 39,000, 55–61 guns[1] | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| Pordenone: 2,500, 4 guns[1] Sacile: 6,500, 19 guns[1] | Pordenone: 253[1] Sacile: 3,846[1]–4,100[2] | ||||||
 | |||||||
TheBattle of Sacile (also known as theBattle of Fontana Fredda) on 16 April 1809 and its companionClash at Pordenone on 15 April saw an Austrian army commanded byArchduke John of Austria defeat a Franco-Italian army led byEugène de Beauharnais and force it to retreat. Sacile proved to be the most notable victory of John's career. The action took place east of theLivenza River nearSacile in modern-day Italy during theWar of the Fifth Coalition, part of theNapoleonic Wars.
In April 1809, Archduke John quickly invadedVenetia in northeastern Italy. On 15 April atPordenone, the Austrian advance guard routed the French rear guard, inflicting heavy losses. Undeterred by this setback and believing he enjoyed a numerical superiority over his opponents, Eugène attacked the Austrians east of Sacile the following day. Though the two sides were equal in numbers of foot soldiers, the Austrians possessed a two-to-one advantage in cavalry, and this turned out to be a key factor in their victory.
Eugène withdrew his army 130 kilometres (81 mi) to a defensible position atVerona on theAdige river, where he reorganized his army and received reinforcements. At Verona, the Franco-Italian army was secure from Archduke John's army advancing from the east and a second Austrian column threatening it from theTyrol in the north. By the end of April, news of French victories in theDanube valley caused John to fall back to the east, with Eugène in pursuit.
In the early part of 1809, theAustrian Empire ofEmperor Francis II determined to go to war againstEmperor Napoleon I'sFirst French Empire. Austria massed her main army in theDanube valley underGeneralissimoArchduke Charles. Though Italy was considered a minor theater, Charles and theHofkriegsrat (Austrian high command) assigned two corps to the Army of Inner Austria and placedGeneral der KavallerieArchduke John in command.[3]
Regarded as "incompetent" by historianDavid G. Chandler,[4] Archduke John had seen his first army utterly smashed by FrenchGeneral of DivisionJean Moreau at theBattle of Hohenlinden on 3 December 1800. In Moreau's subsequent pursuit, John's army became so demoralized that it was scarcely able to defend itself and suffered huge losses in prisoners and weapons.[5] During theWar of the Third Coalition, he had done better. After Napoleon wiped outFeldmarschall-LeutnantKarl Mack von Leiberich's Austrian army in the 1805Ulm Campaign, John's army beat a hasty retreat eastward from its position in the mountainousVorarlberg. He successfully linked up with the Army of Italy, led by his brother, Archduke Charles. Unfortunately for Austria, Napoleon's crushing victory at theBattle of Austerlitz ended the war before Charles and John could intervene in theDanube valley.[6]
At the beginning of the 1809 war, John controlled Feldmarschall-LeutnantJohann Gabriel Chasteler de Courcelles's VIII Armeekorps of 24,500 infantry and 2,600 cavalry, and Feldmarschall-LeutnantIgnaz Gyulai's IX Armeekorps of 22,200 infantry and 2,000 cavalry. The VIII Armeekorps assembled atVillach inCarinthia, while the IX Armeekorps massed to the south atLjubljana (Laibach) inCarniola (nowSlovenia).General-majorAndreas Stoichevich with 10,000 troops faced General of DivisionAuguste Marmont's XI Corps inDalmatia, a French possession since 1806. A body of 26,000Landwehr stood ready to man garrisons and defend the Austrian heartland. John planned to have the VIII Armeekorps move southwest from Villach and the IX Armeekorps advance northwest from Ljubljana. The two forces would unite nearCividale del Friuli.[7]
Another source gave a somewhat different Austrian organization at the outbreak of war. Chasteler's VIII Armeekorps possessed 20,100 men and 62 guns in twodivisions. Feldmarschall-LeutnantAlbert Gyulay led the 1st Division while Feldmarschall-LeutnantJohann Maria Philipp Frimont commanded the 2nd Division. Ignaz Gyulai's IX Armeekorps counted 22,290 soldiers and 86 guns in three divisions. The 1st Division was led by Feldmarschall-LeutnantFranz Gorup von Besanez, the 2nd Division was under Feldmarschall-LeutnantChristian Wolfskehl von Reichenberg, and the 3rd Division was directed by Feldmarschall-LeutnantVinko Knežević. Feldmarschall-LeutnantGuido Lippa was responsible for 30,000Landwehr and reserves.[8] These numbers differ somewhat from Schneid's list and include Stoichevich's force as part of Knesevich's division.
Before the Austrians launched the war, the Tyrol flared in a spontaneous revolt. The German-speaking Tyrolese under leaders likeAndreas Hofer began driving out theBavarian garrisons. Desiring to aid the rebellion, Charles ordered John to send Chasteler and 10,000 Austrian troops to help the Tyrolese. Ignaz Gyulai's brother Albert replaced Chasteler as the commander of a reduced VIII Armeekorps.[9] The organization of Chastler's force is shown in theTyrol 1809 order of battle.[10]
Aware that Austria probably intended to make war, Napoleon reinforced theArmy of Italy underEugène de Beauharnais, building the French component up to a strength of sixinfantry and threecavalry divisions. Many of these "French" troops were Italians, since portions of northwest Italy had been annexed to France. In addition,Viceroy Eugène formed three Italian infantry divisions. The Franco-Italian army counted 70,000 troops, though they were somewhat scattered across northern Italy.[9]
Before 1809, Eugène never led so much as aregiment into battle, yet Napoleon entrusted him with command of the Army of Italy.[11] To prepare his stepson Eugène for the role, the emperor advised him how to defend Italy in many detailed letters. He wrote that if the Austrians invaded in superior numbers, the viceroy was to give up theIsonzo River line and fall back to thePiave River. The emperor noted that theAdige river was a particularly important strategic position.[9] Napoleon did not believe Austria would attack in April, and in any case, did not wish to provoke his enemy by concentrating his armies. Therefore, Eugène's army remained somewhat dispersed.[12]
At the beginning of hostilities, the Franco-Italian troops were stationed in the following positions. The 1st Division ofGeneral of DivisionJean-Mathieu Seras and the 2nd Division under General of DivisionJean-Baptiste Broussier deployed behind the Isonzo River. General of DivisionPaul Grenier's 3rd Division and General of DivisionJean Maximilien Lamarque's 5th Division assembled behind theTagliamento river. The 4th Division of General of DivisionGabriel Barbou des Courières and the 6th Division under General of DivisionPierre François Joseph Durutte concentrated in north-central Italy. The three cavalry divisions and the Italian Guard organized behind the Adige river. The unit locations are listed exactly as they are mentioned in the text. However, it is more likely that Barbou was behind the Tagliamento and Lamarque in north-central Italy. Otherwise, there is no explanation why Lamarque was unable to reach the field of battle.[13]
Archduke John's army invaded Italy on 10 April 1809, with the VIII Armeekorps advancing throughTarvisio and IX Armeekorps crossing the middle Isonzo. After unusually rapid marching for an Austrian army,Albert Gyulay's column capturedUdine on 12 April, with Ignaz Gyulai's forces not far behind. Planning on concentrating his army behind theTagliamento river, Eugène directed Seras and Broussier to slow down the Austrians. But the two divisions were unable to halt John's advance. Even so, Eugène believed his army was strong enough to beat the archduke in battle, so he ordered his divisions to assemble at Sacile on the Livenza River. Because of the Tyrolese revolt, the viceroy sent General of DivisionAchille Fontanelli's Italian division toTrento on the upper Adige with General of DivisionLouis Baraguey d'Hilliers in overall command.[14]
By 14 April, Eugène massed six divisions near Sacile with Lamarque's infantry and General of DivisionCharles Randon de Pully's dragoons still distant. At this time, the Italian Guard, Durutte's infantry, and General of DivisionEmmanuel Grouchy's dragoons were still assembling on the Adige. Before the war, Eugène proposed to Napoleon that his infantry be formed into three corps, but the emperor had not replied to this request. Because of this, Eugène army fought the coming battle as a collection of divisions, which had a detrimental effect on command control. Meanwhile, John used small forces to mask the fortresses ofOsoppo on the upper Tagliamento andPalmanova south of Udine. The Austrians reachedValvasone on the evening of 14 April, but John ordered a night march. Frimont's advance guard was in the lead, with VIII Armeekorps right behind. Slowed by the rainy weather, the IX Armeekorps lagged behind.[15]
The units and organizations of both armies are shown in theSacile 1809 order of battle.[16][17][18]
On 15 April, Eugène ordered his army forward across the Livenza. The French divisions of Grenier and Barbou moved through Sacile, while Seras' French and General of DivisionFilippo Severoli's Italian division crossed atBrugnera and moved toward the village of Tamai. Broussier's division crossed the Livenza to the north of Sacile. Meanwhile, General of DivisionLouis Michel Antoine Sahuc's rear guard consisting of light cavalry and the 35th Line Infantry Regiment deployed 12 km to the east of Sacile nearPordenone. Sahuc's patrols brought word that Archduke John's troops were across the Tagliamento,[19] but because Seras and Broussier had not kept a close watch on the advancing Austrians during their withdrawal, Eugène was unsure of his enemy's strength.[20]
Thanks to his scouts, Archduke John had a clear picture of his opponent's army. He ordered Frimont's advance guard to attack the French soldiers at Pordenone in the morning. At 6:00 am, the Austrians clashed with Sahuc's cavalry patrols. General-majorJoseph von Wetzel's Grenz brigade attacked across the Noncello (Foncello) stream on the east side of the town, attracting the attention of the defending infantry. When General-majorJosef von Schmidt's line brigade came down from the northeast, the French were compelled to stretch the 35th Line to cover the north side of town. Sahuc formed his horsemen north of the town, hoping to catch the Austrian attackers in the flank. But it was the French cavalry who were flanked when Frimont fell on them with four regiments of cavalry, routing them.[19] Without cavalry support, the infantry in the town were forced to pull out.[21] Based on this source, Wetzel probably led the1st Banal Grenz. That leaves Schmidt to command the two line infantry battalions.[22]
At Pordenone, the Austrians lost 221 killed and wounded plus 32 captured out of a total of 5,900 men and 15 guns. French losses were much heavier, 500 killed and wounded, plus 2,000 men and 4 guns captured out of 4,800 troops and 6 guns engaged. Many infantrymen of the 35th Line surrendered and the regiment lost an eagle and two colors. HistorianDigby Smith wrote that the 35th was "practically destroyed". In addition to the three battalions of the 35th Line, the 6thHussar and the 6thChasseurs à Cheval Regiments were engaged on the French side. The Austrians committed one battalion of theArchduke Franz Karl IR Nr. 52, one battalion of theFranz Jellacic IR Nr. 62, and two battalions of the1st BanalGrenz IR Nr. 10 to action. Six squadrons of theOtt Hussar Regiment Nr. 5, four squadrons of theFrimont Hussar Regiment Nr. 9, and two squadrons of theHohenzollernChevau-léger Regiment Nr. 2 were also involved. Smith said the French 8th Hussars were engaged, but this is obviously an error and he meant the 6th Hussars.[23]
Aware of the French buildup at Tamai to the southeast of his positions, Archduke John posted Albert Gyulai's VIII Armeekorps and Frimont's Advance Guard to defend Pordenone andPorcia.[24] Ignaz Gyulai's IX Armeekorps, which had arrived late in the day of the 15th, bivouacked just west of Pordenone.[21] While his left flank held off the expected Franco-Italian attacks on Porcia, John planned to send Ignaz Gyulai first toRoveredo in Piano then southwest in a lunge atFontanafredda and Ranzano.[24]
Still unaware of the presence of the IX Armeekorps, Eugène believed he faced only 20,000 Austrians. He boasted, "In one day I will retake all of the territory I have abandoned at the moment."[21] He knew that the Austrian cavalry enjoyed a numerical superiority over his own horsemen. Since the terrain on the Austrian left flank was unsuitable for mounted action, he determined to move against it. He appointed Seras to command both his own and Severoli's divisions in the attack. Eugène ordered Barbou's division to cooperate in the assault while Grenier pushed forward near Fontanafredda. Broussier held the left flank with Sahuc's troopers between him and Grenier. A four-battalion task force watched for an envelopment on the far left flank.[25]
Covered by an artillery barrage, Seras moved out at 9:00 am with his two divisions. They quickly seized Palse and began assaulting Porcia. Frimont unleashed theOtt Hussars, forcing Seras to pause in his advance. This bought time for John to send VIII Armeekorps in a counterattack against the Franco-Italians in which Severoli was wounded and his division nearly broken. At this moment, Barbou joined the battle and his division first checked the Austrians, then drove Frimont's troops out of Porcia. Seeing his attack having trouble overcoming the Austrian left flank, Eugène ordered Grenier to leave Fontanafredda and throw his division into the battle on the right flank. Sahuc and Broussier shifted to the right to fill the gap in the Franco-Italian center.[24]
Meanwhile, Ignaz Gyulai began his maneuver, leaving General-majorJohann Kleinmayer's grenadier reserve to help defend the left flank. Reaching Roveredo around noon, he veered to the southwest, launching three infantry brigades at Eugène's thinned-out center about 1:30 pm. With General-majorAnton Gajoli's brigade holding Grenier's division near Ronche, the IX Armeekorps threatened to overwhelm Broussier. Grenier rapidly disengaged most of his troops and sent them back to defend Fontanafredda, while Broussier counterattacked near Vignovo. In the center, there was bitter fighting near Ronche as the French repelled one attack only to have the Austrians mount a second one. Eugène refused to commit Sahuc's cavalry in the face of the Austrian superiority in cavalry. During this crisis, Seras lost Porcia to an Austrian attack.[26]
Seeing that his main attack failed, Eugène ordered a withdrawal at 5:00 pm. On the right flank, Severoli and Barbou's troops covered the withdrawal. Historian Frederick C. Schneid believed that a mass cavalry attack "could have smashed" Grenier and Broussier, but Ignaz Gyulai kept Wolfskehl's cavalry behind his infantry.[27] Instead, Sahuc's threatened attack pinned the IX Armeekorps long enough for Broussier and Grenier to get away. The two divisions retreated in square, each division lending support to the other. They finally reached the Livenza after numerous clashes with their Austrian pursuers. Nightfall allowed the two divisions to safely cross to the west side of the river. Seras, Barbou, and Severoli crossed the Livenza at Brugnera the following morning.[27]
The Franco-Italian army suffered 3,000 killed and wounded at Sacile. An additional 3,500 soldiers, 19 guns, 23 ammunition wagons, and two colors fell into the hands of the Austrians. Pagès was wounded and captured while Teste was wounded. According to Smith, the Austrians lost 2,617 killed and wounded, 532 captured, and 697 missing.[23] Schneid listed Austrian losses as 3,600 killed and wounded and 500 captured.[2]
Archduke John decided not to follow up his victory, since the VIII Armeekorps was mauled in the fighting near Porcia and the IX Armeekorps cavalry was worn out. Instead, Frimont trailed after the Army of Italy with his advance guard. Schneid wrote, "John's failure to pursue one week after Sacile was one of his greatest blunders".[28]
On the evening of the battle, Lamarque and Pully reachedConegliano after being delayed by wet weather and bad roads. Eugène used the two divisions as a rear guard as his defeated troops straggled back to the Piave. He also sent Barbou and ten battalions to reinforceVenice, forcing John to detach a force to mask theAdriatic Sea port. The Franco-Italian army held the line of the Piave for four days, but fell back toward theBrenta River on 21 April. When the Army of Inner Austria arrived nearVerona on 28 April, it found Eugène in a strong defensive position behind the Adige. Meanwhile, Chasteler capturedInnsbruck on 12 April andTrento on the upper Adige on 23 April. The Tyrol detachment advanced as far asRoveredo on 26 April before being halted by Baraguey d'Hilliers.[2]
Napoleon was enraged at his stepson's fumbling and he proposed to replace him withMarshalJoachim Murat who wasKing of Naples at the time. Nothing came of this threat because by the time his letter arrived, Eugène was advancing again. The viceroy had accumulated reinforcements as he retreated, so that his army numbered 60,000 by the time it reached the Adige. Meanwhile, John's army shrank as it detached a force to observe Venice and a brigade to reinforce Chasteler. News of Napoleon's victory over Archduke Charles at theBattle of Eckmühl on 22 April caused Archduke John to fall back toward Austria at the beginning of May. The next engagements between John and Eugène were theBattle of Caldiero in the last days of April and theBattle of Piave River on 8 May.[29]
Media related toBattle of Sacile at Wikimedia Commons| Preceded by Battles of Bergisel | Napoleonic Wars Battle of Sacile | Succeeded by Battle of Teugen-Hausen |
